Netflix acts to cut its bandwidth in Europe

Netflix Inc will cut traffic by 25 percent on networks across Europe in a relief measure for Internet service providers experiencing a surge in usage due to government “shelter in place” orders aimed at slowing the novel coronavirus outbreak.

The streaming giant has already deployed a way to reduce its traffic on networks in Italy and Spain by a quarter.

On Saturday it said it would do the same for the rest of Europe.

Netflix said it will remove the highest bandwidth streams within each resolution category for the next 30 days in Europe.

Users might notice a slight decrease in video quality.

“Our goal is simple: to maintain the quality of service for our members, while supporting ISPs who are facing unprecedented strain on their networks,” the company said.

Netflix said it will continue to adhere with normal procedures for all other networks “until and unless they experience issues of their own.”

Netflix had over 42 million subscribers in Europe, Africa and the Middle East at the end of the first quarter of 2019.

Most are in Europe.

The telecoms industry has in recent days reported a spike in data traffic on networks as thousands of people were forced to stay home in an attempt to curb the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus.

The virus has infected more than 274,800 people globally and killed more than 11,389.